ON occasion, readers have asked us why can’t councils do more to stop littering on our streets.

So hats off to Christchurch council who took a man to court who threw a cigarette butt on the ground in the town’s High Street.

Because the offender didn’t pay the fixed penalty notice in time, he had to fork out nearly £800 in total in fines and costs.

That’s an astonishing sum, but it does send out a clear message to would-be litterers.